Film: Mathil Mel Poonai
Director: Bharani Jayapal
Cast: Vijay Vasanth, Vibha, Kartik, Thambi Ramaiah
Having assisted various directors like Selvarghavan and Venkat Prabhu, Bharani Jayapal makes his directorial debut with Mathil Mel Poonai. With a pedigree like his, there was some expectation from the maker. But apart from a few good moments, the film is a let down. It is about delinquent kids and of vendetta served cold. Jayapal takes two apparently unrelated plots on different tracks, and converges them at a point. It is this suspense quotient of what the common factor could be that sustains interest for the earlier part. After essaying supporting roles in some films (Chennai 28, Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu), Vijay Vasanth gets to play the lead. He plays a trainer at a driving school in Puducherry. There are his mandatory spats with Vibha who comes to learn driving from him. Love follows soon enough and marriage too. The turn in the plot comes when the newly weds set out with her family to offer worship to the family deity in her village. Vijay Vasanth needs to work more on his expression, looks and screen presence. Vibha (of Leelai, Naan) plays a gutsy, feisty girl. In the latter part where the narration goes into the action-mode, she gets to be an active part of it, and performs spiritedly.
On a parallel track is the story of five boys in a school in Theni. While Divya has a soft corner for her classmate Sriram, it’s resented by the rest of his friends, particularly Johny, the class bully. The darker side of adolescent minds is depicted here. Of how kids without proper guidance of parents or teachers can take the wrong path. And of how thoughtless mischief and pranks can often turn into violence and horrific crimes. Shades of Kalla Thuppaki are felt here. The influence of Selvaraghavan is felt in the scenes at the juvenile home, where Johny and his gang spend time after a horrific incident.
The woods have become a favourite location of film-makers in recent times. Here too the plot shifts to a forest ambience, where the newly weds running for their lives, go through a nightmarish experience. It’s a long drawn out run-and-chase, till it all gets repetitive and monotonous. Some of the fights are choreographed well, like the exciting scene where an Aghora takes on the tormentors of the duo, and where the little urchin girl with him, puts up a splendid stick-fight. But some of the scenes are gory and horrific in their depiction of violence, and not meant for the faint hearted. A more coherent screenplay and a crisper narration would have worked for the film. At about 160 minutes of running time, it’s a dreary forest adventure.